This invention relates to an ink jet wherein the ink employed within the jet is of the phase change type, which may be referred to as hot melt ink.
A phase change, or hot melt ink, of the type utilized in an ink jet is characteristically solid at room temperature. When heated, the ink will melt to a consistency so as to be jettable. A hot melt ink jet apparatus and method of operation are disclosed in copending application Ser. No. 610,627, filed May 16, 1984.
An ink jet apparatus consumes ink at a rate so as to make automatic ink loading desirable, thereby minimizing operator intervention. In copending application Ser. No. 660,657, filed Oct. 15, 1984, now abandoned, and its continuation Ser. No. 854,332 filed Apr. 21, 1986 ink pellet loading is accomplished utilizing a cartridge for sequentially advancing pellets to a loading position.
In many instances, an ink jet apparatus may have topographical considerations which limit the size and/or configuration of the cartridge. At the same time, it is desirable to have the cartridge be sufficiently large to permit continuous operation of the ink jet apparatus over an extended period of time. It is also important that the cartridge be reliable so as to ensure the proper delivery of ink to the heated reservoir of the hot melt ink jet apparatus at the appropriate time.